Customer Reviews

Keeping the Beat on the Street: The New Orleans Brass Band Renaissance

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Dating back to Danny Barker, Tuba Fats and Leroy Jones in the 1970s, this book takes you on a personal tour of the progression of NOLA Brass Bands. It is essentially the evolution of this artform as told by the people leading this renaissance. I picked this book up and couldn't put it down!

This music has propagated throughout the country to include groups based in NY, Boston, Minneapolis, and even Madison WI. It is nice to hear the stories of the Rebirth, Dirty Dozen, Fairview and Hurricane Bands, and the most recent generations that include New Birth, Soul Rebels and others. Long live NOLA Brass Music!

This book gives an overview of the history of brass bands as told by the musicians themselves. It's interesting hearing the differences between the older brass bands and the newer brass bands, and how they regard themselves and the other bands. The social context of brass band music in New Orleans is incredibly interesting. It starts in school and lasts for life. To see a history such as this is intriguing.

I do wish that they would update the book with post-Katrina information, and I do wish that they would tell more about the younger, up and coming brass bands that are playing all over New Orleans.